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Expert is the Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics and the Director of the Space Propulsion Laboratory. His research features the development of highly efficient and compact ion thrusters for applications in space systems, including pico- and nano-satellites. His main interests are plasma physics, space propulsion, ion beam physics, small satellites and nanotechnology. He received the Young Investigator Program Award from the US Air Force for his work on micro-propulsion and the “Future-Mind” award from Quo Science Magazine and the Discovery Channel. Expert's research has been sponsored by NASA, DARPA, AFOSR, AFRL, NSF and other government and private sources. He has received the Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award for his contributions to the research experience of undergraduate students. Expert has authored over 10 patents and 100 conference and journal publications. He teaches subjects in space and rocket propulsion, fluid mechanics and plasma physics. Expert is an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), and member of the American Physical Society (APS) and of the Electric Rocket Propulsion Society (ERPS). He was awarded the AIAA’s Technical Achievement Award for his contributions to ion electrospray propulsion and has served as a member on several study committees of the National Research Council at the National Academies, including the Asteroid Threat Mitigation, NASA Technology Roadmaps and Achieving Scientific Goals with CubeSats. Principal Fields of Interest: Space Propulsion; Micropropulsion; Physics Applied to Aerospace; MEMS; Space Systems, Focused Ion Beams.

Electric propulsion for very small satellites such as CubeSats, will help scientists and engineers to design and implement inexpensive and highly capable spacecraft.

My group in the Space Propulsion Laboratory at a prestigious technical university is working on the development of Electrospray Propulsion Systems based on MEMS technologies and processes.

The first goal is to create engines that are impressively compact and can work with high specific impulse and efficiency; to understand the fundamental physics behind their operation and establish their ultimate practical limits.

The second and more interesting goal is, one day, to have these thrusters push a little satellite designed by students all the way from earth orbit to an exciting destination in deep space, like an asteroid, a moon or a planet.